Luggage-carrier



E; KPERKINS.

LUGGAGE CARRiER. A'PPLlCATlQN FILED FEB. 8, i919.

Patented May 17, 1921.

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EARL R. PERKINS, 0F MANITOVISH, WISCONSIN.

LUGGAGE-CARRIER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 17, 1921.

Application filed February 8, 1919. Serial No..275,807.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EARL R. PERKINS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Manitowish, in the county of Iron and State of ,Wisconsin, have invented new and useful Improvements in Luggage Carriers, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to luggage carriers designed more particularly for attachment to the running board of automobiles, and its object is to provide a very simple and ethcient device of this kind which can be folded down flat onthe running board, and which is so constructed that it serves as a mat or foot scraper when thus folded.

The object stated is obtained by means of a novel combination and arrangement of parts to be hereinafter described and claimed, and

in order that the same may be better understood, reference is had to the accompanying drawing forming a part of this specification.

In the drawing,

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a fragment of an automobile body showing the application of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a plan view, and

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the device, partly in section, viewed from the interior of the car when unfolded and set up ready for use.

Referring specifically to the drawing 5 denotes the usual running or foot board at the side of the automobile body 6.

The luggage carrier consists of a solid plate 7 of aluminum fiber-board or other stiff and light material, having one of its faces sunken and formed'with a series of parallel and spaced upstanding ribs 8 which extend in the direction of the length of the running board. W'hen the plate is seated flat on top of the running board, the ribs are on top, and the plate now has the function of a foot scraper or mat, the ribs being the scraper bars.

The plate 7 is pivoted or hinged at one of its longitudinal edges to the running board 5 at the outer edge of. the latter, and its width is such that when it is folded down on top of the running board its free edge lies close to the body 6 as shown in Fig. 2, the width of the plate being therefore not greater than the width of the running board. The pivotal connection of the plate with the running board is made by pivot pins 9 projecting from the ends of the former and seating in bearings 10 carried by the latter. The

hinged edge of the plate is rounded so that it can turn freely on the running board.

When the plate 7 is to be used for supporting hand bags or other luggage on the running board 5, it is swung upwardly to vertical position as shown in Fig. 3, so that the running board now has an upstanding wall at its outer edge to hold the articles which may be placed on the running board between said wall and the body 6 of the car. This wall is held in upright position by foldable brace bars 11 pivoted at one end to the running board as shown at 12, and at the other end to the ends of the wall at the topthereof, as shown at 18. WVhen the wall is swung down on top of the running board, the brace bars fold up alongside the edges of the former as shown in Fig. 2.

In order that the space between the plate 7 and the body 6 of the car may be closed up when the former is in upright position, the rear face of the plate carries wings 14 which are hinged to the plate so that they may be swung to extend outwardly from the ends thereof over tothe body 6 as shown in Fig. 3. These wings are located inside the brace bars 11, and when the articles are placed on the running board inside the wings, the latter are held in operative position. These wings also serve to hold the plate 7 in upright position.

The side of the plate 7 to which the wings 1% are pivoted has recesses 15 into which the wings are foldable to lie flush with the plate when the latter is swung down on top of the running board 5 to serve as a foot scraper as hereinbefore described.

' I claim:

The combination with the running board of an automobile; of a luggage carrier comprising a wall pivoted to the running board for folding on top thereof, and havingone side provided with foot scraper bars which are on top of the plate when it is folded, foldable braces extending between the wall and the running board and end wings carried by the wall and extending across the running board, said wings being pivoted to the wall and adapted to be folded thereagainst when it is folded on top of the running board, the side of the wall against which the wings are foldable being recessed to receive the same.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

' EARL R. PERKINS. 

